Give us an insight into your main character. What does he/she do that is so special?

The main character of NORTH OF THE DRAGONLANDS is Zuri, kidnapped and sold into slavery as a girl, who becomes a scribe in a city far from her home. I had become tired of writing about action heroes proficient with guns, swords or magic, and decided to create a protagonist who was good at languages and running away. One thing she does have in common with the protagonists of my earlier novels, and most of her allies in this one, is that she’s an outsider who reluctantly becomes a hero mainly by chance, and only later by choice.

Which actor/actress would you like to see playing the lead character from your most recent book?

I didn’t have anyone in mind when I wrote the novel, but Quvenzhané Wallis would be excellent.

How much research do you do?

Difficult to say. I read a lot of non-fiction, and I draw on that when I write, but mostly I do research when the story requires me to look up something, be it street views of city where a scene is set, the latest developments in forensics, how to kill a particular mythical monster, or just a likely name for a character born in some other country in a certain year.

When did you decide to become a writer?

I’ve been making up stories to entertain myself for as long as I can remember; I started writing some of them down when I was seven. I’m not sure how old I was when I realized that that might be a way of making a living, but it was probably about the time I started high school.

Where do your ideas come from?

The same place as anyone else’s. The only difference is that writers grab ideas that look interesting, play with them, and bash them against other ideas to see what happens.

Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer just see where an idea takes you?

It depends on the length of the work. The shorter it is, the less likely I am to write an outline first. I only started writing outlines so publishers would pay me in advance; I don’t like writing them, but once they’re done, they do help me to write my first drafts more quickly and get stuck less often.

What is the hardest thing about writing?

For me, at least, it’s constantly trying to write something at least as good as my best work, while also trying to write and publish enough that I stay in print.

What is the easiest thing about writing?

When your characters come to life and make up their own dialogue for you, so all you have to do is take dictation.

Do you ever get writer’s Block?

Only in years that start with a 1 or a 2, or on days that end with a y.

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Thanks so much for joining us this week Stephen! Please be sure to follow him and check out his work!